Just before the January Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Warner Bros. Entertainment announced that they will only release High Definition movies in the Blu-Ray format after May of 2008.
Warner had been the only studio to produce titles in both the Blu-Ray and HD DVD format after Paramount dropped support for Blu-Ray and exclusively went with HD DVD.
Warner had been one of the first studios to support HD DVD, prior to publishing Blu-ray Disc titles. At that time, Warner said it would support both formats as long as there was an opportunity to make money from each format.
Paramount opted to drop Blu-ray last year, reportedly after receiving a substantial subsidy from the HD DVD camp. Industry observers have said that both camps were wooing exclusive support from Warner Brothers as well. Sony chairman Sir Howard Stringer declined to say whether Warner Bros. was offered an incentive to jump ship, saying instead, “We have to take their statements at face value, that they acted in the best interests of the consumer.”
With the lost support of HD DVD, Warner has tipped the scales in the favor of Blu-Ray – possibly ending what the New York Times reported on 12/31/07 as a “Stalemate” in the format war.
Toshiba, the main backer of the HD DVD format, defended the technology, "It's difficult for me to believe when all the pundits declare that HD DVD is dead," states Toshiba VP of Marketing Jodi Sally. "Clearly, the events of the last few days have led many of you to that conclusion. We have been declared dead before. The reality is we ended 2007 with a majority of the year-to-date market share."
